Machine for measuring textile fabrics, &amp;c.



L. N. MOSS.

MAQHINE FOR MEASURING TEXTILE FABRICS, 6w. APPLICATION FILED APR. 10, 1912.

1,087,677. Patented Feb.17,1914.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

COLUMBIA PLANDGRAPH (10., WASHINGTON, D. Ca

L. N. MOSS.

MACHINE FOR MEASURING TEXTILE FABRICS, 8w APPLIGATION FILED APRJO, 1912,

1 0 7 677 Patented Feb. 1'7, 1914 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

LOUIS 1\T. MOSS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

MACHINE FOR MEASURING TEXTILE FABRICS, 8w.

rosters.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 17, 1914.

Application filed April 10, 1912. Serial No. 689,731.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Louis N. Moss, a citi- Zen of the United States,residing at the borough of Manhattan, city, county, and State of NewYork, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines forMeasuring Textile Fabrics, &c., of which the following is aspecification.

My present invention relates to improvements on the class of machinesfor measuring cloth and flexible material set forth in Letters PatentNo. 1,005,453, issued to me Oct. 10th, 1911, the objects being mainly toattain a freer unwind of the material to be measured, so as topractically eliminate all dangerous pull or tension that might otherwisestretch and impair certain delicate woven or textile fabrics, orinterfere with the correct measurement thereof, and also to afford meanswhereby measurements of greater length may be made and indicated withmore accuracy than heretofore.

Incidentally the invent-ion also includes certain details in theconstruction and arrangement of the parts whereby the apparatus isrendered more simple and effective, all as hereinafter more fully setforth.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1, is an elevation of the righthand side of the machine; Fig. 2, a plan of the same, broken awaycentrally; Fig. 3, is a longitudinal section taken upon plane of line3-3 Fig. 9, and looking toward the rear or left hand side of themachine; Fig. 4, is a diagram illustrating the method of threading orstarting the unwind; Fig. 5, is a diagram illustrating the unwindingoperation; Fig. 6, is a detail view with the worm, scale and guide rodbroken away to show the miter gears and countershaft underneath.

I have found that while the unwind roll-supporting spindle blade whichis a feature of my aforesaid Letters Patent is effective when properlymanipulated, it requires skill and care to insert the spindle blade intothe goods, which is objectionable not only on account of the time andhigh priced labor involved, but also on account of the danger ofaccidental injury to material, especially goods of delicate nature. Forthis reason I support the bolt C, of material to be measured upon aplurality of unwind rollers u, a, delicately and accurately mountedhorizontally on ball bearings b, b, the material being threaded over andaround said unwind rollers with the unwound portion of the boltsuspended in a bight thereof, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 3,and in solid lines in the diagram Fig. 5. Two or more of these unwindrollers a, u, may be employed for the purpose, as shown in the drawings,that number being sufiicient for ordinary purposes and sizes of bolts ofcloth. They afford convenient preliminary support for the bolt C, ofcloth or other flexible material to be measured, so that the operatorhas not to sustain the bolt bodily during manipulation preparatory tostarting the unwind. This will be understood by reference to Figs. 3 and4, in the first named of which the bolt C, is shown as resting upon therollers a, u, with the end of the cloth dropped inward. Owing to thefact that the unwind rollers u, u, are idlers, and mounted on ballbearings at that, it is an easy matter to turn the bolt 0, upon saidrollers by hand suificiently to form a loop or apron c, as shown in Fig.4, into which the remainder of the bolt 0, may be slid or dropped asindicated by the dotted lines and arrow in said Fig. 4, after which thefree end of the cloth is again passed over the unwind rollers 10, u, andthen under the intermediate guide and tension roller 25, and over themeasuring drum d, and finally to the folding board f, as indicated bythe dotted lines and arrows in Fig. 3. Thus two widths of the materialcomposing the bolt C, pass over the rollers a, a, traveling in the samedirection, first, the width descending across and upon the rollers a, a,when the bolt is dropped into the preliminary loop or apron 0, asillustrated in Fig. 4, and secondly, the continuation of the free endpassed over said first width and said unwind rollers when said free endis threaded through the apparatus, as in Figs. 3 and 5. Fig. 5,represents this unwind diagrammatically, by reference to which it willbe understood that as the cloth is drawn forward by the measuring drumd, the bolt 0, will necessarily rotate within the bight 0, of the cloth,thus unwinding itself, the unwind passing up over and across the rollersu, u, down again around the bolt to form the con tinuation of theoriginal bight c, and again upward and over said unwind rollers 10, u,to the intermediate guide and tension roller 2?, &c., as before stated.I have found by experimental investigation that this tumbling of thebolt upon itself, as it were, opens out and frees the material, and atthe same time affords just the requisite degree of back pull orresistance to afford the best results in the unwind,the goods passingfreely a second time over the unwind rollers u, u, and then under thecombined guide and tension roller t, to the measuring drum (Z.

By the use of a plurality of rollers spaced apart with relation to themaximum width, not of the cloth, but of the bolt thereof, I am enabledto form a bight or loop 0, of adequate space and capacity to insure aminimum of resistance and prevent the bolt binding or retarding itselfduring 1ts rotation.

The operative parts are mounted upon and between side members orstandards a, a, of a suitable frame work, including the uprights a, a,between which the contact roller z', is supported by means which tendconstantly to press it against the measurlng drum as in my patenthereinbefore mentioned. The peripheries of both the contact roller 2',and the drum cl, may be faced with suitable contact cloth as set forthin my said prior Letters Patent, to insure a firm hold on the goods tobe measured.

In the present case I dispense with a delivery roller between themeasurlng drum and the folder board f, and feed the measured materialdirectly from the drum (Z, to the latter. In place of the deliveryroller heretofore used as aforesaid, I em ploy a series of stripperfingers s, s, pro ect1ng upward from the cross bar a of the frame, onwhich the folder board f, is fulcrumed, and having their upper endsprotruding into peripheral grooves of, cl, on the measuring drum (2, aswill be seen by reference to Figs. 2 and 3. Bythis means the measuredgoods is positively lifted and stripped from contact with the peripheralcloth surface of the measuring drum cl, and all tendency to cling to thedrum is counteracted. I also vibrate the folder board f, by means of apitman p, pivotally connected with said folder board f, and to a pinlon39, mounted upon a bracket a on the rear side frame a,said pinion p,meshing w1th the spur wheel (Z upon the driving shaft (Z upon which themeasuring drum (Z, is mounted. The use of the gearing for vibrating thefolder board f, renders the action of the latter more positive anduniform than the means disclosed in my said prior Letters Patent.

An important change in my present construction enables me to use anindicating scale and mechanism of much greater length than in my priorconstruction, in which the worm is driven directly by a miter gear on hedriving shaft meshing with a corresponding miter gear on the worm. Thisnecessarily limits the extension of the worm, and hence of the scale&c., to one side of the power shaft. I obviate this difficulty andutilize all the available space for the indicating mechanism byinterposing a countershaft 6, between the miter gear m, on the powershaft (Z and the worm w, which in this case is mounted in suitablebearing brackets a4, a above the axis of the power shaft (Z and in lieuof a miter gear is provided with a spur gear w, which meshes with acorresponding spur gear '0, (shown in Fig. 1) on the countershaft c,which latter is mounted in the brackets a a, in a line parallel to theworm w, but at right angles to the power shaft (Z and is provided with amiter gear 6 meshing with the miter gear m, on said power shaft. Thus bythe use of the countershaft 'e, I am enabled to straddle the drivingshaft (F, at right angles thereto, and to extend in parallelism theindicator worm w, scale 0, and the guide rod 11., upon which the pointer71., travels, upon both sides of said shaft and thereby approximatelydouble, more or less, the length of the indicating mechanism. As aresult I am enabled not only to measure greater lengths of cloth at onereading of the index, but also to use a scale made in largerproportions, in which smaller subdi visions of a yard may be visiblyindicated, all of which tends to clearness and accuracy of measurement.As a corollary I am also enabled to use a worm having a coarser screwthread of steeper or quicker pitch, which is an advantage as afi ordinggreater durability and greater accuracy of engagement with thefe1nale-threaded under side of the traveling pointer n, upon the guiderod n, said pointer n, being made to swing into and out of engagementwith the indicator worm w, as in Letters Patent 1,005,453 hereinbeforereferred to.

Another feature of my present invention consists in the use of edge feedguides g, 9, arranged in conjunction with the unwind rollers u, u, insuch manner as to insure the alinement of the goods unwound from thebolt C, and prevent the latter having undue play or motionlongitudinally as it rotates. Incidentally the guides g, 9, form theside walls of a box or compartment into which the spool boards 0, of thebolts C, fall when the latter are fully unwound, but they neverthelessperform a new and important function for which they are purposely spacedand arranged as related to said unwind rollers uflu. In other words theyare largely essential to the success of this method of unwind.

My cloth measuring machine is designed to be operated by hand as thesurest and most convenient means of maintaining control and accuracy ofmeasurement, and to this end the power shaft (Z is provided with a handcrank cl, by which the drum (Z, and spur wheel 0?, may be rotated.

By my improved construction and arrangement of parts I practicallyeliminate all unnecessary tension or drag on the ma-,

terial and hence the resulting measurement is more certain and correct.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is,

1. In cloth measuring mechanism of the character designated, thecombination with the measuring drum and connections, of indicatingmechanism consisting of a miter gear upon the driving shaft, acountershaft formed with a miter gear at one end meshing with that onthe driving shaft, and having a. spur gear at the other end, a wormextending at right angles to the driving shaft and on both sides thereofand formed with a spur gear meshing with the spur gear on thecountershaft, a scale and a pointer guide rod parallel to said worm anda swinging pointer slidable on said guide rod, the under side of saidpointer being female threaded to engage the worm thread, for the purposedescribed.

2. In cloth measuring apparatus of the character designated, thecombination with the indicating mechanism, measuring drum andconnections of the spaced apart unwind rollers 11, u, disposed in thesame horizontal plane and the intermediate guide and tension roller 2?,whereby the material to be measured may be threaded over and around saidunwind rollers with the wound portion of the bolt suspended in a bightthereof and the unwound end of the cloth again carried over said unwindrollers and under said intermediate guide and tension roller to themeasuring drum d, for the purpose and in the manner shown and described.

3. In cloth measuring apparatus of the character described, unwindrollers disposed in the same horizontal plane spaced apart to form asupport substantially the width of the bolt, the bolt being suspended ina bight of the material, and a guide and tension roller independent ofand separated from said unwind rollers.

a. In cloth measuring apparatus of the character designated, spacedapart unwind rollers adapted to support a bolt resting thereon and overwhich the material is designed to pass, and a guide and tension rollerin the same horizontal plane as said unwind rollers whereby the materialmay be threaded over and around said unwind rollers with the unwound endagain carried over said unwind rollers and under the tension roller.

LOUIS N. MOSS.

l Vitnesses GEO. NM. MIATT, LILLIA MIATT.

Copies of this patent Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G.

